Blog Post

Home Insurance – Even When You’re Not at Home

by Thomas Zuo

When you think of your home insurance policy, you probably only think of it as it relates to your home in South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Wyoming, West Virginia, or where ever. However, did you know that your home insurance can provide you with coverage in many situations when you are not physically at home? The coverage territory of a home insurance policy is actually quite broad and extends beyond the boundaries of your physical property. Understanding the scope of your policy can help you access your coverage in situations you previously would have thought no coverage applied.

Within your home insurance policy, you should review the “Definitions” section that explains the various terms used throughout the policy. Pay particular attention to the definition of “insured location,” as this can include a variety of places outside of your home, depending on the coverage section and the type of loss being insured. Of course, an “insured location” includes the “residence premises,” which is your home that you regularly reside in and which is the location that is specified in the declarations page of the policy as the primary residence. A loss at the residence premises will be covered by the home insurance policy.

The policy also considers additional parts of any premises, structures, and grounds that you acquire as a residence during the policy as an insured location. This allows you to not be permanently rooted to your primary residence for the entirety of your policy term. If you move somewhere temporarily or buy a new property to live in, those are covered automatically by the policy. However, it is always a good idea to inform your insurance company of such changes.

If you should move somewhere that you do not own but are residing there temporarily, that would also be considered an insured location. For example, temporarily moving in with a friend or relative would still afford you certain coverage benefits under your home insurance policy. If your personal property that you brought with you was lost, damaged, or stolen, the policy would consider those to have been in an insured location.

Once you have purchased land to build a home, that is also considered an insured location. However, the land must be a site where you’ll be building a home to reside in. This means that if it’s going to be an investment property or a home that you will sell as soon as it’s built, then it would not be covered. Along these lines, any vacant land that you rent or own (other than farm land) is considered to be an insured location.

To a limited extent, some farm land can be considered an insured location. It must be farm land without any buildings and it cannot exceed 500 acres in total, regardless of locations. This means that you cannot have multiple 500 acre plots of land because the sum of all farm land must not exceed 500 acres to qualify for coverage.

Lastly, any cemetery plots or burial vaults you own are also considered an insured location. So remember that your home insurance policy is not limited to just your actual house, as it can also cover you in several other locations as well. Check your specific policy to see how far your coverage extends.